Innocence
by laurachavez2002
Summary: After Stefan finds her in the woods, the brothers are desperate to keep her from Klaus. Claire is a doppelganger but her blood isn't pure. Will Claire's doppelganger be a problem or will she be a solver? The brothers are now fighting for her affection leaving Elena jealous and rebellious. Will she try to hurt Claire or herself? Stefan/Elena at first Damon/OC Stefan/OC


Authors Note: So, the thing about this story, Klaus was in Alaric's body and when he was realized, he went and got Claire to bring her with him to Mystic Falls. This story does take place during season two. Claire explains herself and everything during the story!

Disclaimer: I do not own the Vampire Diaries, its storyline or characters. I only own Claire and her storyline.

Chapter One: Deeper

Claire POV

The air was cold on her bare arms and her feet hurt. Rocks and sticks stabbed them with every step. Her head was pounding and she was shaking.

She didn't know where she was. She was in the middle of a forest, alone, cold and scared. She was really hungry and thirsty. Her only pieces of clothing were a pair of ripped jeans and a shirt so big for her; she could hardly keep it on her shoulders.

She ran away from him the first chance she got. He was evil and had nothing better to do in life except drink her blood. She didn't understand but she did feel light headed.

Most of all, she was afraid he was going to find her and kill her. Maybe if hurt her really bad if she was lucky.

She could hear animals and birds throughout the trees and hoped to god she was close to civilization. She missed her family so much. She can barely remember what they looked like. She'd been missing for almost three years. His name was Klaus. He used her to feed off of and use against people. He said that they were driving to a small town where he could start his army. We stopped the car and I took off out the door. He yelled after me but it was shortly muted by the wind whistling in her ears.

A few hours later, she leaned against a tree; too dehydrated to even cry. She suddenly heard multiple sticks crack behind her and she instantly stepped away from the tree, spinning around. She saw a figure come into few and she started to shake her head.

"No, no, please. Klaus, no!" she pleaded but when she could get a closer look at the person, she saw that it wasn't Klaus. Her heart almost leapt out of her throat. He had dark blondish brownish hair and his eyes were a forest green.

"Are you okay?" he asks softly and she shakes her head.

"Please help me." she whispers and he nods.

"Come on." He says grabbing her arm. He picks her up wedding style and they trudge to the forest. She didn't realize how tired she was until she rested her head against his shoulder and fell asleep.

She woke up to voices. She opened her eyes and looked around. She was lying on a bed and assumed it was a bed. She eased down into it and realized her neck hurt badly. She lifted her hand up and felt a bandage. She hadn't even noticed that it was bleeding. Her vison adjusted and she was in a room.

It had dark brown walls and each one of those walls was lined with either pictures or bookshelves. The bed was very comfortable. She felt lighter. She hadn't slept much in the past month.

"Look, Stefan, she's awake." A female voice whispers and she flops her head over.

The blonde man walked next to the bed and got down on one knee.

"Hey." He says calmly. "How are you feeling?"

She takes in a breath.

"Where am I?" she croaks looking away from him.

"You're in a house." He answers and she throws him a look. "You're in my house."

"Who are you exactly?" she asks rolling her head back over.

"My name is Stefan. I helped you in the forest." Stefan answers to her. She closes her eyes and opens them back up slowly.

"Thank you." She whispers and she can see a smile appear on his face. She closes her eyes and she suddenly falls asleep again.

Stefan POV

She suddenly drifted off into sleep and he turned back to Elena. He still hadn't gotten her name yet. He did get a name from her and that was Klaus. He was unsure if he should tell Elijah about this girl or to keep it a secret.

"What was she doing out there?" Elena asks and Stefan shrugs.

"I have no clue. She was wandering out there and when I approached her, she freaked out." Stefan answers. Elena nods.

"We have to help her and then send her back on her way." Elena says turning away from Stefan.

"I don't think she was traveling, Elena. I think she was running." Stefan says and Elena turns back around.

"From who?" she asks. Stefan hesitates.

"Klaus." He answers and her eyes widen.

"How…how do you know this?"

"She thought I was Klaus. She was afraid of me."

Elena pauses in taking the information.

"We have to tell Elijah." Elena says. Once again, Stefan hesitates.

"Tell me what?" the voice says and Stefan tenses. He slowly turns around. Elijah looks down at the sleeping girl. He gives them a confused look.

"Who is this?" Elijah asks. Elena is quiet.

"I found her in the woods. Her neck was wounded by a vampire." Stefan answers for the silence. Elijah doesn't look away from the girl.

"What was she doing out there?"

"She was running?"

"From whom?"

He can almost feel Elena tense as well. He turns to look at her and she nods slightly.

"Klaus." He answers. Elijah takes a deep breath and looks at Stefan. His eyes are filled with rage.

"My brother?"

Stefan nods. Elijah clenches and turns and walks out of the room. The girl is still sleeping soundlessly. He doesn't want Damon anywhere near her. He wants to help this girl stay away from Klaus. That isn't very easy when he is in town.

Stefan turns around to face Elena. Elena has a worried look on her face.

"What are we gonna do?" she whispers crossing her arms. Stefan walks closer to her. He places his hand on the side of her face.

"We are going to save her." He answers and she gives a forced smile. He leans down and kisses her.

"Go get some rest." He says to her. She nods and walks out of the room. Stefan turns back to the girl. She is beautiful, he will not lie. She was so afraid. He was afraid for her. Klaus gets what he wants even if it means killing people. He needs to get information from her. He wanted to understand her even it meant he got more than he wanted.

Damon POV

He could smell her from two rooms over. He had stepped behind a wall when Stefan brought her in. He didn't know who she was but she was beautiful. Normally, his scale went sexy, hot or ugly but she was beautiful.

He knew Stefan wanted him to stay away from her but he should be allowed to get her name right?

He didn't listen in to the conversation. She was running from Klaus. He was obviously feeding off of her. She knew about vampires if she was with Klaus.

Stefan walked out of the room and past his bedroom door. Now was his chance.

He crept into Stefan's room and looked down at the girl. Her chest moved up and down slowly as she slept peacefully. Her neck was in a bandage. A bit of blood had started to show but it didn't bother him.

She made a noise and rolled her head over slightly making Damon jump. He watched her carefully.

He heard footsteps and flashed back into his bedroom. Stefan came up the stairs with a glass of water and a plate of crackers and bread. He was going to baby this girl.

Damon sauntered out of his room and down the stairs.

He went straight for his alcohol and poured himself a glass. He noticed Elijah standing in the library. He walked after him.

He pushed open the doors and Elijah's head turned at the sound.

"Damon." Elijah says nodding. He turns his head back around becoming more interested in the book.

"Elijah." Damon says back nodding. He takes a drink of his bourbon and Elijah turns to face him again.

"That girl, her name is Clarice or Claire. My brother mentioned he had a…partner." Elijah says to Damon. Damon becomes interested.

"Really?" Damon asks.

"I had no clue he was feeding off of her. This is unusual behavior of my brother." Elijah answers. Damon eyes him.

"Why?" he asks.

"Why what?"

"Why was he feeding off of her? Why was he using her?" Damon asks. Elijah sighs.

"I am afraid I cannot answer that question myself for I do not even know the answer." Elijah says and Damon looks into his glass before taking a drink.

"We'll find out eventually." Damon shrugs and Elijah chuckles.

"My brother is very intimidating. If she was so afraid of Stefan, she is very much afraid of Niklaus." Elijah says looking at Damon. Damon lets out a disapproving breath as another person enters the room. It's Stefan.

Stefan POV

He walked in to see his brother and Elijah talking.

"Brother." Damon said turning to face him.

"Damon, I could smell you in her room." Stefan says angrily and Damon smirks.

"Had to look at our new inventory." Damon says taking a drink of his bourbon. Stefan glares at him.

"She is not a present, Damon. We are protecting her from Klaus. Damon frowned

"I know." He said back in a dry tone. Stefan turned to Elijah.

"Did you know about her?" Stefan asks, clearly sounding angry. Elijah shakes his head.

"I did not and if I did, I would've helped." Elijah answers. Stefan anger decreases.

"Can you think of anything your brother might want her for?" Damon asks Elijah.

"Leverage maybe but I have no clue, as I was telling Damon, this is unusual behavior from my brother. He did mention he had a partner, though. I didn't know he was feeding." Elijah explains.

"We need to keep her away from Klaus. We have to keep her safe." Stefan says and Damon nods in agreement.

"I will make sure my brother does not find her. He is still in Alaric's body." Elijah says. Damon nods, takes a sip of his drink and walks out of the library. He can hear Elena's quiet breath's as she slowly falls asleep in the guest bedroom. When he went to check on the girl, she was still fast asleep.

"Do you know her name?" Stefan asks Elijah.

"Her name is Claire or Clarice. I found that out a few days before you found her in the woods." Elijah answers. Stefan walks over to one of the couches and sits down, sighing. Elijah watches him but slowly walks out of the library. Stefan doesn't know what to do with her. He is afraid for her most of all. She is so innocent. She hasn't done anything wrong. It hurts him to see her like this. Stefan leans back on the couch and closes his eyes, before he knows it, he's fast asleep.

Claire POV

She is running towards a bright light. She is so close to touching it when her eyes snap open, letting out a small gasp. She looks around and it takes her a second to remember where she is.

She remembers Stefan and his house. That's where she was. She was at Stefan's house. She was safe.

She sat up slowly. Her body was buzzing. She wasn't drunk but she felt a lot better. There was a fuzzy feeling filling her body that made goose bumps run up and down her arms.

She looked around. There was one window but the only light was from the moon. She squinted her eyes at the clock on the wall and saw that it was almost one in the morning.

She swings her feet over the bed and see's that she is still wearing the clothes she was running in. Her feet hit the wood floor and a cold sensation feels her legs. She lifts them up for a second but slowly set them back down. She stands up, wobbly. She grips the nightstand for support. When she can fully stand, she lets go of the small table and starts to walk. The door is open in her room. She looks out into a large hallway. The only noise she can hear in her breathing.

She walks out, letting the carpet slip between her toes. She suddenly stops at a room. The door is cracked and she peeks in. She sees a dark haired man asleep in his bed shirtless. He rolls over and she instantly steps back from his door, startled. She sees a flight of stairs and walks down them. She enters a living room. This house is very old looking and she likes that. She looks around. She sees another open door. It looks like a library.

She slips inside and sees Stefan asleep on the couch. She clenches her fists and stops walking. No one was awake in this house.

She turned to walk out when she heard a voice.

"You're awake." Stefan says softly. Claire turns back around looks at him rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"I didn't mean to wake you." She says her voice shaky.

"It's okay. I am a light sleeper." Stefan says standing up. She watches him carefully.

He doesn't walk towards her, sensing her fear.

"Am I safe here?" she asks a few moments later. Stefan eyes give her a feeling of comfort.

"Yes, you are safe her." He answers and she relaxes her stance.

"I will explain myself, if you want." Claire says and Stefan becomes suddenly interested. He nods.

"Yes, please." He says.

"I was running. Klaus pulled over on the road. I took off running. He didn't come after me. We were going to a place called Mystic Falls. I am seventeen years old and I lived in Colorado before this." She says nodding and Stefan can feel her pain. Her eyes are filling with tears.

She shifts uneasily in her stance. She puts her arm up to her and looks down at the ground. She takes in a deep breath.

"I don't know why Klaus was hurting Me." she says her voice cracking. Tears fall onto the carpet under her feet. "He said he didn't want me dead and he didn't want anyone to know about me and when I asked why, he didn't say."

She takes shaky breath. Her heart hurts. She suddenly feels a hand on her shoulder and she jumps at the touch. She looks up and see's Stefan looking into her eyes.

"You're going to be safe here." He says and she nods. He pulls her into a hug and she sobs into his chest.

A few minutes later, she pulls away from him. She wipes the tears away from her face.

"I'm sorry." She says to him giggling. He returns a smile.

"It's okay. I may not understand but I can imagine it's horrible." Stefan says and she nods.

"I feel like I am safe. I am a million miles away from Klaus right now. He's probably in Mystic Falls by now!" Claire says dancing around the room.

Stefan POV

He watched her dance around and all he could feel was pain. She didn't know that she was in Mystic Falls and that Klaus lived in Alaric's apartment.

"Claire." Stefan says and she stops dancing, a grin planted on her face. He can't do it.

"Yeah?"

"I'm happy for you." Stefan says and her eyes are shining. She is defiantly a good looking run-away. She tilts her head to the side and her brown hair falls down. Her brown eyes give him a playful look and he chuckles slightly.

"No, you have your own fun." Stefan says to her and she shrugs.

"Oh well, you don't know what you're missing." Claire says and runs off. He sighs. He should have told her. He hears her feet patter up the stairs and he walks into the living room. He loves Elena. Elena is the beautiful girl he is in love with. It is her and it will always be her. He doesn't know why he even thinks he might even like Claire. He doesn't even know her.

Damon POV

He could hear Stefan and Claire's conversation. He must play a pretty good sleeper because when she looked at him, she fell for it.

He could hear her giggle. Stefan was to of a coward to tell her.

He then heard her feet come quickly up the stairs. He prayed that they would go all the way down the hallway to Stefan's room but they stopped and he could hear her breathing. She was watching him, clearly interested in his shirtless, sleeping body. He heard his door creek and her small gasp. He smirked into his pillow as she quickly ran off. When he was sure she was gone, he rolled over and looked at the spot where she'd been standing. He props himself up on his arms and stares at the ceiling. He knows Stefan has feelings for Claire. Damon didn't even know her so it didn't really matter to him. She was probably a goody-goody like Elena.

He rolled over and looked at the time. It was almost thirty minutes past one. He sat up in his bed and rubbed the back of his neck. He couldn't sleep. Normally, he would be fast asleep right now but something about this girl in this house kept him awake. Elena was fast asleep in the room down the hallway. Damon climbed out of his bed and walked over to his dresser. He pulled open a drawer and pulled out an old journal he'd found in the forest a few days ago. He flipped it open to the first page and read.

_April 8__th__, 1863_

_I needed to right this down and I begged father for a journal and he finally got me one. I had to spill this to somebody._

_I have powers. I am a witch. I don't know how it's possible but I have magical powers. I learned that magic is balanced by nature. I love to sit out there and spin the leaves around and make the wind blow through the trees. It seems like my life is perfect. I can also feel who is a vampire and who isn't. _

_I am glad that my closest friends aren't vampires or father would execute me._

_I saw Stefan today. He told me Damon was still of at war._

"_Clarice!" he called to me. I turned my head to see him walking towards me._

Damon's eyes suddenly widen and he threw the book back on his dresser. It can't be real. She is seventeen! She isn't a vampire!

He walked out of his room, grabbing the journal. He tumbled down the stairs and approached Stefan.

"What is going on?" Damon asks holding up the journal. Stefan took it from him and read it. His eyes also widen.

"That can't be possible." Stefan says and Damon shrugs.

"I dunno. Why don't you ask the little girl living in your room?" Damon says pointing his finger up towards his room.

"She is going through a lot right now and I don't think it's a good idea to ask her now." Stefan says. Damon shoots him a glare.

"Tell her the truth, Stefan before she finds out herself." Damon says and turns around and walks back up the stairs. He walks into Stefan's room and look at the sleeping girl. He feels bad for her. If he were Stefan, he'd tell her the truth right now.

He turns and walks back into his room and lies back down on his bed. He closes his eyes and falls asleep instantly.

Claire POV

She woke up the next morning with the fuzzy feeling again. Her head hummed as she stretched her arms out. She reached her hand out and the bed was cold. Stefan didn't even sleep in his own bed. That girl she heard last night was probably his girlfriend. She still wanted to figure out who that other guy was.

The sun shines on her face and she rolled all the way over sighing. She stares at the book shelf in front of her.

There is a diary lying on the nightstand and she picks it up. She feels like she is invading space.

She opens it to the first page. She looks for the correct date. The closest she can find is yesterday.

September 17th, 2011.

_I am trying to keep Elena safe but it's hard when Damon is trying to keep her alive in the only way he can…as a vampire. I know Klaus is somewhere here in Mystic Falls and I am determined to find him and end his life._

She suddenly gasps and drops the diary in her lap. No, it can't be. She isn't in Mystic Falls.

"Stefan." She starts to whisper but she starts to call his name louder. She climbs out of bed. She walks out of the room letting the diary fall to the floor. Stefan is walking down the hallway.

"I am in Mystic Falls! You have to get me out of here!" She shouts. She hears doors open behind her. Stefan tenses.

"How did you find out?" Stefan asks.

"Your diary, Stefan! Klaus is here!" she answers him. Stefan doesn't say anything. "I am leaving…today."

Her face is serious and her eyes are hard.

"Claire, you can't do that. Klaus will kill you the first chance he gets." Stefan says to her.

"You are all vampires. I am not safe here." She whispers in a shaky voice which shows that she is afraid.

"You're a one thousand year old witch." A voice says behind her and she turns. It's the dark haired man.

"What?" she exclaim giving him a confused look.

"Your ancestor, she looks exactly like you." Damon says shaking his head and then he freezes.

"You're a doppelganger." Stefan breaths and Claire turns around to face him.

"A doppelganger?" she asks shaking her head.

"That's why Klaus wanted you. You were a doppelganger he could use but when he realized that your blood wasn't pure, he started to go for Elena." Stefan explains. Claire stands there, her body shaking.

"Elena is that girl?" she asks gesturing to the brunette hiding in the doorway of her room. Stefan nods.

"I need air." Claire says and starts to walk down the stairs. She turns out the front door of the house and suddenly stops, almost paralyzed.

A black haired, pale skinned, brown eyed man is walking into the house wearing a suit.

"Excuse me." he says trying to go around her. She steps out of the way and he goes inside. Claire watches him walk into the library.

She quickly walks outside, shutting the door behind her. She takes in large breaths and grips the balcony.

The morning sun is just rising. A few bugs fly around her but soon fly away. Is it true what Damon said? Am I a witch?

I see some of the fall leaves lying on the ground. Slowly, I lift my finger up. I make a swirling motion and they fly up in the air. I gasp and drop them, bumping into the wall behind me.

I am a witch.


End file.
